


Finders Keepers

by Titans_R_Us



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman : Gotham by Gaslight (2018)
Genre: Dick on the other hand will smile and push you off a building, Families of Choice, Family Fluff, Gen, I love Tiny Tim, Jason will cut you if you touch his Tim, Tiny Tim - Freeform, brothers by choice, street urchin robins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-10
Updated: 2018-02-10
Packaged: 2019-03-16 09:53:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13633896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Titans_R_Us/pseuds/Titans_R_Us
Summary: “Jason?” With a slow voice and a blank expression Jason couldn’t tell what feelings are under Dick’s skin. “What’s this?”“Early birthday present.” Jason drawls, “Gotcha another mouth to feed.”“You stole me a kid?”“More like finders keepers, Dickie.”





	Finders Keepers

**Author's Note:**

> One way the Cock Robins Gang from Gaslight Gotham could have gotten together. Plus under all that spite, dirt, and bitterness, Jason MIGHT have a heart of gold.
> 
> I'm on the fence for doing more but for now enjoy Tiny Tim getting a 'new' home.

You’ll never hear him confess it, but it Jason who picked up Timmy. It was a quick thing. He had snatched some lady’s purse (with barely anything in the stupid thing) and her scream musta brought all of Scotland Yard on top of him.

Or it just was not his lucky day.

His feet rain on the cobblestone when some coppers just appeared outta nowhere’s, melting outta the walls, and Jay is fast but those buggers got them longer legs. So the moment he’s a good alley away, he scans the scene and leaps towards a scrap heap.

He even shoves some poor little sod, shorter by a head to the side and weaves through the pile of metal brickerack. There’s old bicycles, factory parts and broken stone. It’s a framework of rust and sharp edges that tell bigger hands it was better to _back off_ than waste time with the hassle.

Unless the pursuer is that angry.

_“You there!”_

The shout like thunder makes them startle and, sure, maybe the kid will hafta take the fall, _but that’s life._ There’s a hole in the trash perfect for Jason to watch a cop pull the kid roughly by the collar. Tiny toes fill his vision, and Jason winces a tad as the man shakes the boy. But gotta do what whatever it takes to survive, right? Dickie would box his ears but Jay knows that underneath the disapproval the older teen’s the same way.

“Y-yessir?” What a pathetic, sneaky voice. Dang, how’d the kid last a day? Jason brings up his knees to chest quietly, one hand passing over his knife.

“Did ya see a boy going this way?” the officer growls.

“Whatcha mean sir?  I-I see lotsa boys around here. Everyday, Sir.” The young scamp stammers, hanging there.

“Nah son, _I mean just now._ He’s a bit older than ya with a cap and red hair?”

That kid better not rat him out. Jason will gut him like a fish. The irony of the tides turning against him, of _him_ being thrown on the tracks, was not lost on Jason.

“Oh sure! Brown vest?”

 _The kid is dead meat._ Jason hisses softly, tightens his grip on the knife. Muscles going tense ready to jump, ready to fight.

“Yeah, boy, that’s the one!”

“He went that way!” an excited voice squeaks with no hesitation. Jason’s heart pounds as the boy raises his arm to point...down the alley _instead_ _of at him_. “If you run now, you might nab him before he hits the docks.”

“Thanks, kid.” There’s a light thump of a body hitting the filthy road, a plink of a coin and then with fading footsteps, the cop is gone.

There’s a moment of silence, two, and then, “...You can come out now.” Huh. What had been an excited high-pitched voice goes calmly even and it’s so vastly different Jason goes a tad wide-eyed. “They won’t catch ya anymore, promise.”

Jason crawls outta the trash.

Now that he can take a good look at him, it’s no wonder the dumb cop believed him, with those big blue eyes staring into his, Jay would believe any lie too.

“Thanks, kid, thought I was dead for sure. But hey, I haven’t seen ya on these streets. Ya new?” Jason squints at the boy, at the skin that’s too clean and his teeth that are too white. Yeah, this sucker’s new, he bets that he won’t last a month out in the open like this.

A blush fills those pale cheeks. “Sorta, it’s a long story...but I’ll be fine.” The kid bites his lip determinedly and jeez, Jason’s black heart bleeds a smidge.

“A story huh? I’d love to hear it, but yer right, yer gonna be fine. Ya know why?” He swings an arm over bony shoulders earning him a surprised jerk.

Alright, the action was sorta cute.

“Why?” Tim says warily.

“‘Cause ya got a favor from me,” Jay stabs his thumb at himself. “I take my debts seriously, kid. In fact, I know a place where those baby blues could get ya some meat on those bones. The name’s Jason, what about chu?”

The boy eases a little in his hold, thawing a bit, “Tim.”

Jason beams, “Well, tiny Tim, stick with me if ya want. I’ll even teach ya how to bite those ankles so yer less _‘yessir-y’_ all the time. Whatcha say?”

Tim clutches at his coat and mumbles a quiet, “That sounds nice.”

“Yeah?” Leading him away, Jason gives the fella a smile.

He gets one back.

_“Yeah.”_

It’s this shy twist of the lips and that’s when Jay decides this guy is one of his own. Every man for himself mentality be damned.

Plus Dickie’s reaction to the kid when he brought them back to their tiny hole in the ceiling was great. Jason had to hold Tim by the ribs to help him up, get him to climb to the crevice between two roofs. The crack in the building opens to someone’s attic, but what the tenants below don’t know won’t hurt em. Dick has a small fire going on the roof outside, a tin of watery stew brewing on top of the flames. When he sees Jason plop Tim onto the roof his jaw practically drops to the cracked shingles.

“Jason?” With a slow voice and a blank expression Jason couldn’t tell what feelings are under Dick’s skin. “What’s this?”

“Early birthday present.” Jason drawls, “Gotcha another mouth to feed.”

“ _You stole me a kid?_ "

“More like finders keepers, Dickie.”

"Instead of a bit of coin ya said you were going to? Awwwwww you shouldn’t have.” Dick says wryly, “But it ain’t like you to do charity.” 

Tim takes that as a cue to chime in, “Um...He said it was a favor? You do one, you get one? I won’t stay for long, but if I could just get a bite it’d be nice. I’m real little so I only need a little. But if that’s too much trouble then I’ll...I’ll get outta your hair, I guess.” The tiny head ducks down and Jason is on the verge of ripping Dick a new one.

Dick folds his arms. “A favor, what kind of favor? You helped my Jay?”

Tim blinks at him. “Just a little. Just lied to some cop for him. Jason ain’t the type to need much you know?”

“No, he ain’t. Too much practice at getttin’ into and outta trouble. C’mere, don’t want ya to fall off the edge before we give ya thanks.”

Jason watches Dick pick up Timmy to set him closer to the fire and away from the roof’s edge. In minutes the teen goes from serious to an utter goofball over the kid. _Behold the power of puppy eyes._ Plus though the birthday present line was a joke Jason swears, Dick doesn’t do take-backs or returns. They pull the story piece by piece outta Timmy (parents dead in train crash, bad disgruntled nanny, left on the street to rot like a child’s broken doll) and Dick declares that he’s one of the family now. A bewildered Timmy gets his first all encompassing _hug of death_ and Jason prays that since Dick gots a new cuddle buddy, he can finally leave Jay alone.

Unfortunately Jason comes to find that he’s dead wrong. Week after week proves that Dick just has two brothers to coo, coddle, and motherhen the shit outta now.

_Argh._

And it might be all Jason’s fault.

Jason sighs in the dark and there’s a rustle besides him.

“Jay? You still up?” A head pops out from the blanket on his side. The gaslights burn low, a flicker now and then against the curtain that supposed to keep out the chill. Their space in the attic barely fits a mattress and one night Dickie’s snore is gonna give them away he’s sure. The three smush together on the broken cot. It rests on the ground but at least it’s softer than dirt and with Dick smothering them with his legs stretching other theirs, it’s warm. Timmy is packed in the middle of the boys. Smallest always gets middle is what they tell him when he pouts. It’s safer.

“Just thinkin’. Go back to bed.”

“‘Don’t hurt yourself.”

“Shush you.” Jason ruffles his hair, giving the mildest of noogies until the kid giggles. “Shut yer eyes.”

“‘Kay.” And Timmy buries his head in Jason’s shoulder. His whole body going lax when Jason scratches his head lightly. Awwww, when did he start this babying nonsense? Thinkin’ up every curse he can remember, Jay realizes that Dick’s touchy-feelness is rubbing off on him.

The bugger.

So, this is family, huh?

Tim makes a soft noise and Jason rubs his head soothingly.

Well whatever, _it’s his._ And anyone who messes with it is gonna pay.

You can count on it.


End file.
